Ahead of World Food Safety Day, New York State Announces New Acti...

New York State today, ahead of World Food Safety Day on June 7, announced it has formally set new action levels for lead in certain spices, implementing the strictest standards in the country to protect public health and the safety of the food supply.  Based on New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets’ (NYS AGM) testing and the New York State Department of Health’s (NYS DOH) assessment, and in the absence of finalized, specific federal limits for lead in spices, the State has lowered its action level for lead in curry, dill seed, dried basil leaves, dried non-bell pepper, nutmeg, sesame seed, and turmeric by 40 percent, to 0.6 parts per million (ppm).  Beginning January 1, 2028, if NYS AGM finds consumer products with lead above the action level and the producer or distributor does not recall the product, NYS AGM will issue a consumer alert and take steps to remove the product from stores. 

State Agriculture Commissioner Richard A. Ball said, “With the adoption of the lower action levels for lead in certain spices, the Department will be in a better position to protect public health by requesting businesses to recall dangerous product exceeding the new action levels or, if no recall is initiated, seizing the product.  While we have more work to do in this space to ensure public health and safety, we are proud to be leading the country in setting standards for safer spice options.”

State Health Commissioner Dr. James McDonald said, “New York State’s new, nation-leading standards for lead in spices are another step to protect New Yorkers including adults and children from the harmful effects of lead, which can lead to brain damage, permanent injury and life-long disabilities. We will continue our work with the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets to ensure that contaminated products are removed from our food supply.”

The new lower threshold for lead was determined following extensive review of laboratory surveillance data, toxicity data, and spice consumption rates.  NYS AGM also found that there was an 85 percent achievability rate for those spices that are subject to the new action limit.  Over the last several years, NYS AGM conducted significant outreach efforts to the spice manufacturing industry, working in close collaboration with the American Spice Trade Association (ASTA), as well as state representatives, to achieve a viable solution for consumers and manufacturers.

Background

In 2016, with no specific federal limits on lead in spices, New York State set its own standards to request businesses to initiate a product recall: 25 ppm for a Class I recall (where reasonable probability exists for serious adverse health consequences or death) and 1 ppm for a Class II recall  (where exposure may cause a temporary or medically reversible adverse health consequence or the probability of serious adverse health consequences are remote).  At that threshold, the NYS AGM was able to secure recalls for nearly 155 adulterated products from the marketplace through 2021, and 341 to date (7 Class I recalls and 334 Class II recalls).

In 2019, the NYS DOH provided a risk assessment of metals in spices. This assessment was used to inform the risk management decisions that were established by NYS AGM and can be found at health_based_guidance_for_metals_in_spices_technical_support_document_final.pdf.  In 2022, the NYS AGM published its findings and conclusions that there was a demonstrated need for stricter regulation of heavy metal content in spices to protect public health. Inorganic arsenic, cadmium, and lead were determined to be the heavy metals of concern. The findings from that assessment can be found at the Journal of Regulatory Science.  As part of this combined work, NYS AGM recommended lowering New York State's Class II action levels for inorganic arsenic, cadmium, and lead in spices by a factor of almost five times to 0.21 ppm.   

As research and sampling continued, and understanding that various spices hold different thresholds, the NYS AGM moved to an incremental approach and is adopting the 0.6 ppm action limit for lead in the spices listed above to achieve a safer retail marketplace for consumers.  Sampling and assessment of additional spices, such as cinnamon and ginger, will continue; however, the NYS AGM remains committed to ultimately obtaining the 0.21 ppm threshold.

Laura Shumow, Executive Director of the American Spice Trade Association, said, “The American spice industry’s top priority is ensuring continued consumer access to a safe and affordable supply of spices. We have worked closely with New York State officials over the last several years, and while New York State’s new action level is more stringent than ASTA’s guidance levels and other international levels, we appreciate the consideration provided to achievability, availability, and grocery costs for New York families. The U.S spice industry thanks the Department of Agriculture and Markets for the ongoing dialogue and looks forward to continuing to collaborate with New York regulators to ensure implementation of new action levels for lead in certain spices is achievable and enhances public health.”

As part of the NYS AGM’s work to ensure that the food and feed supply is safe, the Department’s Division of Food Safety and Inspection routinely inspects New York’s retail food establishments, verifies product labeling, and collects food products for analysis for adulterants and contaminants by the Department’s Food Laboratory. The New York State Food Laboratory tests many types of food as a regular course of business and laboratory results trigger inspectors to initiate recalls where necessary.

About World Food Safety Day

World Food Safety Day was created by the United Nations General Assembly in 2018 to draw attention and direct educational efforts to reducing the approximately 600 million cases of foodborne illnesses that occur annually across the globe. The annual observance on June 7 aims to draw attention and inspire action to help prevent, detect, and manage foodborne risks, contributing to food security, human health, economic prosperity, agriculture, market access, tourism, and sustainable development. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) jointly facilitate the observance of World Food Safety Day, in collaboration with Member States and other relevant organizations. This international day is an opportunity to strengthen efforts to ensure that the food we eat is safe, mainstream food safety in the public agenda, and reduce the burden of foodborne diseases globally. According to the WHO, each year worldwide, unsafe food causes 600 million cases of foodborne diseases and 420,000 deaths.